Our Divination of the moment I drew from The Hawaiian Oracle deck. I fanned the cards from left to right and drew a single card with my left hand signaling it’s origin from the right hemisphere or intuitive seat of the brain. Ka Pe’elua or The Caterpillar was the aumakua or spirit guide selected.
In Ancient Hawai’i, Ka Pe’elua would feast on the leaves of the ‘Uala or the Hawaiian Sweet Potato. This food staple was crucial to sustaining the Hawaiian population in health and prosperity. Ancient Hawaiians respected and understood the natural order of the Universe and did not seek to oppose the Pe’elua by killing it but rather they fostered conditions mutually beneficial by creating an area where the Pe’elua could feed on discarded ‘Uala leaves after removing the caterpillar from the plant. A supplication asked of the creature requested that it leave the tubers for human consumption in exchange for the delicious leaves, hoping that both species could be supported in life by the ‘Uala, in peaceful coexistence.
Pe’elua’s wisdom speaks to us about creating boundaries on a spiritual level, preventing ourselves from crossing into the realm of retaliation and revenge based on fear of lack, but instead seeking an outcome where there are no losers but winners on both sides. We must find balance in our understanding of perceived threats instead of moving automatically into opposition, squashing what we fear with a heavy hand of vengeful resistance. When we react with destructive fear, spurned on by our entitlements, we create an atmosphere ripe for suffering that ripples out into our environment only to return to us with devastating effects. The results compromise happiness and the natural order of the universe; potentially leading to more conflicts with unimaginable collateral costs.
In Western civilization the solution typically sought to preclude predators from competing for a limited resource calls for destroying the perceived threat. Multinational GMO corporations reap enormous profits from the sale of their patented genetically modified seed crops along with the highly toxic cocktail of proprietary chemicals required to sustain their seeds through maturation by the across the board killing of insects and weeds.
Whether we talk about the conflicts in the middle east; the justification for and the production of genetically modified organisms; or the politicians willing to up-end a fragile economy to get their way without compromise; the wisdom of Ka Pe’elua is clear. Find the common ground first and work for mutually beneficial outcomes that sustain life for all not just the the diabolical ego’s of the powerful.